MCLEAN, Va., Jan. 14, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- USA TODAYHigh School Sports – the nation's leading source for high school sports news and information – today launched the latest installment of its popular "Best Of" contest series and are asking high school basketball fans to cast their votes for America's Best High School Boys Basketball Coach. Voting begins today at 12pm ET and concludes February 7.

Fans from around the country will be given the opportunity to help determine the winner from a pool of 306 active head boys basketball coaches, six from each state plus Washington, D.C. Nominees were selected by USA TODAY staff following several weeks of research and conversations with local high school reporters and officials with high school basketball expertise from each state.

Voting for the Best High School Boys Basketball Coach concludes February 7, following three rounds of voting. The state winners and top two wildcard selections in the first round will advance to the regional round with voting January 22-30. The eight regional winners and two more wildcards will move onto the national round with voting from January 31 to February 7. The winner of America's Best High School Boys Basketball Coach will then be based on receiving the most votes in the final round.

The winning coach will receive $2,000 for his/her school athletic department, while the runner up will be awarded $1,000. Additionally, the contest's third-place finisher will receive $500, and the fourth-place finisher $250. All 10 finalists will receive USA TODAY High School Sports banners for their schools.

The "Best Of" contest series launched in November 2012 with the best high school football rivalry competition, won by Brookfield vs. Marceline in Missouri. In January 2013, Hartford (Vt.) was crowned as the People's Champion high school football team. In spring 2013, the Centralia (Ill.) Orphans were named as the best high school mascot ­in a contest where 80 million total votes were cast.

This past fall, the best high school football coach competition crowned Philip Haywood of Belfry (Ky.) as its champion. In USA TODAY High School Sports' most recent contest, the second annual best high school football rivalry went to the North Carolina small-town matchup of Bunn vs. Louisburg when voting wrapped up in December. In all, the "Best Of" contests have received more than 100 million votes.

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